■ BOXING
Fighter denies drug dealing
British Olympic boxer Bradley Saunders on Tuesday denied any involvement in dealing cocaine after a police raid on his home that led to him being detained overnight. The highly regarded light welterweight was held along with his girlfriend after a police sniffer dog found a suspected quantity of the drug in their back garden during Monday’s raid on their home at Sedgefield in the northeast of England. Saunders, 22, and his girlfriend were released on bail without any charges and he later suggested he may have been the victim of a malicious set-up. “I earn a decent living and have been getting paid since I was 13 years old for boxing. There is no reason for me to be involved in drugs. We’re a well-known family in Sedgefield but since my face has become better known I think I’ve become more of a target. Since the Olympics I’ve been the victim of quite a lot of crime. My house was burgled recently as my girlfriend and I slept — they let themselves into the house through the back and took her car keys. People get jealous,” he said.
■ RUGBY UNION
Prince backs All Blacks win
The All Blacks met Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II on Tuesday and were told by her husband, Prince Philip, to expect an “easy” ride when they play England on Saturday. The prince made the comment to All Blacks captain Richie McCaw as the royal couple accompanied the team and New Zealand’s newly-elected Prime Minister John Key on a visit of a giant inflatable rugby ball near Tower Bridge in London. The ball will host Monday’s draw for the pool stages of the 2011 Rugby World Cup, which will be played in New Zealand. McCaw said of the royal prediction: “He was asking me how the grounds were and what it was like to play at Twickenham, actually. We were talking about the game last week — he reckoned it will be quite easy this week, but I don’t know about that.”
■ SUMO
Mongolian made ‘ozeki’
Mongolian Ama was promoted to the second-highest rank yesterday in another show of the country’s dominance of Japan’s ancient sport. “I would like to accept it humbly. I will earnestly devote myself to pursuing the path of sumo,” Ama said during a ceremony at his stable. The decision by the Japan Sumo Association to promote Ama to ozeki — just one rank below grand champion — was unanimous. The 24-year-old wrestler, real name Davaanyam Byambadorj, changed his ring name upon promotion, as other wrestlers have before. His new moniker is Harumafuji, meaning “sun horse” and Mount Fuji. At 129kg, Harumafuji is the lightest top-flight fighter and is reputed for his speed. He made waves in the last tournament which ended on Sunday, finishing runner-up with a 13-2 record behind compatriot and grand champion Hakuho. Harumafuji is the third Mongolian to reach the rank of ozeki and is the seventh non-Japanese ozeki in history.
■ CRICKET
Symonds in the clear
Australia’s Andrew Symonds was cleared of wrongdoing following an incident in a bar three days ago and will be allowed to face New Zealand this week. Cricket Australia investigated the incident that ended with a man being ejected from a Brisbane bar. Symonds was “approached by a patron and handled himself appropriately and with maturity and restraint,” Cricket Australia chief executive officer James Sutherland told reporters yesterday. Symonds recently completed a rehabilitation program.
OUT AGAINST INDONESIA: Taiwan reached the semi-finals at the tournament for the first time by defeating Denmark, with Chou Tien-chen beating Viktor Axelsen Taiwan yesterday crashed out of the Thomas Cup team competition in Chengdu, China, but achieved their best result at the top-tier badminton event by reaching the semi-finals. Indonesia were too good in the semis, winning 3-0 to advance to today’s final against China, who eliminated Malaysia 3-1. In the opening singles of the men’s team clash at the Hi-Tech Zone Sports Center Gymnasium 2, Anthony Ginting defeated Taiwan’s Chou Tien-chen 21-18, 21-19 in 51 minutes, which put a huge hole in Taiwan’s aspirations to perhaps even make the final. In the men’s doubles, Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Ardianto downed Lee Yang and Wang
NO DOUBT: Spurs star Wembanyama was unanimously selected as NBA Rookie of the Year, winning all 99 votes to become the first Frenchman to capture the honor The Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night produced a dominant defensive display to seize a commanding 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven playoff series against the Denver Nuggets with a 106-80 road victory. The third-seeded Timberwolves harassed Denver relentlessly to claim a second straight win over the NBA champions as the series heads back to Minneapolis for Game 3 on Friday. Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards scored 27 points apiece, but the star of the show was Minnesota’s suffocating defensive effort, which knocked Denver out of their stride almost from the tip-off. The Timberwolves finished with 11 steals and 12 blocks, in sharp contrast to
Top-ranked Iga Swiatek on Saturday came through “the most intense and crazy final” she has ever contested to avenge her loss to Aryna Sabalenka in last year’s Madrid Open final with a grueling three hour, 11 minute victory in the Spanish capital. Coming back from 1-3 down in the decider and saving three match points in total, Swiatek claimed a 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (9/7) victory to secure the Madrid Open trophy for the first time. “Well, who is going to say now that women’s tennis is boring, right?” Swiatek said. Swiatek, who picked up the 20th title of her career, and ninth at
One of Malaysia’s top soccer clubs has pulled out of today’s season-opening Charity Shield after a spate of assaults, including an acid attack, on players in the country. It leaves the kickoff of Malaysia’s season this weekend under a cloud following the unprecedented acts of violence against players, which have left the country shocked and angry. Authorities said they have imposed tighter security, but Selangor said that they would not play in the showpiece curtain-raiser against Malaysian Super League champions Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) citing “a series of criminal incidents and recent threats.” Selangor and Malaysia winger Faisal Halim is in intensive care